Haven Palace
Haven Palace (known as simply the Palace to Haven citizens) was a large and iconic tower in Haven City, featured in Daxter and Jak II, also making an appearance in Jak 3. It was chiefly inhabited by Baron Praxis and his daughter Ashelin Praxis. The fall of the Palace, witnessed in the prologue of Jak 3, saw a devastation of Haven City, producing countless civilian casualties, damaging many sectors of the city (most notable of which included parts Main Town, the rest of the district being abandoned and overrun with metal heads), and caused many other sectors to be damaged or inaccessible, rendering what was known as the Palace ruins. History ''Daxter'' After discovering that the tanker's intended cargo destination was the Baron's palace, Daxter decided to go investigate. Upon arrival, he and Ximon were stopped and interrogated by Krimzon Guard commander Erol. Daxter purported that one Captain Ximon Rupertikjakmos called about a bug infestation, but Erol retorted that the Captain was on leave for the month. Ximon quickly made up that the Captain called from his "vacation house home hotel" and told them to get there "pronto" per the "Baron's wishes". Erol reluctantly allowed them inside the palace, telling them to do their job quickly and that he would be watching.''Daxter'' script § "To the palace" Partway through his investigation, Daxter dropped in on an argument between Erol and Count Veger. While Daxter stayed hidden, Tik distracted the two, causing a map of the prison to drop on the floor near Daxter. The map had showed that four out of five prison inmates had died from the Dark Warrior Program, the lone survivor being Jak. Consequently, this showed where Jak was located in the prison which would aid Daxter in the rescue of his fiend.''Daxter'' script § "Finding the map" Lastly, Tik found a uniform lying in a locker room in the palace. While Daxter stated it would be too big for him, he figured Jak could use them.''Daxter'' script § "Finding the clothes" These are the "new threads" Jak used during Jak II.''Jak II'' script § "Prologue" ''Jak II'' During Jak II, Jak infiltrated the Palace in the mission "Ride elevator up to palace" by using one of the support tower cables to get to the roof and spy on the Baron and Erol. Here he witnessed a holographic message between the Baron and Metal Kor, where he discovered the wartime deal between them. Daxter sneezed while they were spying, which attracted the attention of the Baron, and a three-part battle ensued on the Palace's roof afterwards ("Defeat Baron at palace"). The Baron's defeat caused him to set his guards on high alert in search of a person with Jak's profile, which upset Underground leader Torn. After winning the Class 1 race, Jak was rewarded with a purple security pass (the Palace's color code) as well as a "lifetime's supply" of eco. Jak's newfound access was used to infiltrate the interior of the Palace ("Explore palace") where he vandalized some parts of the Palace and eventually met up with Ashelin in the throne room, where she threatened to kill him for betraying her. Jak then warned her about her father's plans for cracking open the Precursor Stone, which Vin also verified on a communicator, thus gaining Ashelin's trust. ''Jak 3'' A year after Jak II, in the beginning of the War for Haven City, Veger learned that the Palace was built over the entrance to the catacombs, presumably from his Precursor monks. In order to reach them, the Count bombed the Palace and it collapsed on the entire city. The culprit of the bombing remained unknown among everyone else, but it was suspected to be the metal heads (it was only later in the game that Veger revealed to Jak that he bombed the Palace himself). The Palace crushed parts of Main Town and the Gardens (save for the southern Gardens, which was terraformed along with the western Bazaar into Metal Head city). It also flung its support towers among other sectors, damaging them in many parts. It also made some sectors merely inaccessible, such as the eastern Bazaar and other parts of Main Town. The Palace was never rebuilt following the war, unlike other monumental buildings such as the Mar Memorial Stadium. Location Overview The palace was built in the heart of the city; northern Main Town is located to the north, the eastern and western Bazaars are situated on either side of it, and access to the Port is to the south of it. It was the largest structure in Haven, identifiable even from the furthest distance. The palace towered over Haven, and its support towers and/or building could be seen from nearly any point in the city. The support towers were six in number, and were used to stabilize the Palace's top-heavy architecture. Eco tankers were able to dock at the uppermost portion of the tower. Entry hall The main entrance to the palace is situated along the southern wall of the building, located just north of the Tomb of Mar and south of downtown Main Town. The first room encountered is the entry hall, containing within it mostly computer terminals, but also has large red drapes and other decorations with Baron Praxis' insignia. There is an elevator shaft in the back left corner of the room, which connects to one level of the palace in Daxter, and three different levels in Jak II. ''Daxter'' In Daxter, the elevator arrives at a large hall with a skylight ceiling, and has several security measures when the alarm is triggered: small beds of grass will erect electrified spikes, potted plants will turn into automated turrets, and picture frames on the walls will open in half to release laser barriers. There are two smaller rooms connected to this hall; one to the right in the beginning of the room and one to the left at the end of it. The first room is a monitoring room with several computers, and lockers in the back. The second room contains several crates, some of which have been torn from the inside out. At the very end of the hall is a large statue, behind of which is an entrance to a large skylit fountain room. This area has two large chutes along either wall pouring water into a bay below. The water is then sucked back up to the top via a number of large tubes. The area is traversed on a walkway with grass beds and more potted plants-turned-turrets. Additionally, metal slugs inhabit the grassy parts of the walkway. Beyond the fountain room is a very large library, with laser barriers separating each block of the area. Aside from bookshelves lining every wall, there are also tables, vases, and large chandeliers. Additionally, parts of some of the flooring have been diminished into beds of dirt, inside of which metal slugs inhabit. Separating two parts of the library is a park-like area with an open ceiling, with strips of grass along the edges of the area and park benches along the inner edges of the park. In the middle of the park is a large stone structure with various torches around it, and a large torch on top. The end of the library is met with another area similar to the fountain room visited earlier in the level. Just after this area is the Baron's treasure room: an elaborate chamber with a large amount of gold coins and jewels spilling out of several vaults lined along the walls. There are also large stacks of crates containing solid gold bars. There are two of these rooms, separated by a laser-bound floor that must be traversed via crates that are cycled along the ceiling. At the end of the second room is a chute that drops down to a series of halls and locker rooms. On top of a stack of crates in one of these halls is a ventilation shaft through which Daxter crawled to get to another open-ceiling area. Upon the first playthrough, Ximon's company van will be waiting, but upon returning, there will be a warp gate. ''Jak II'' In Jak II, the elevator is connected to three other levels of the palace. Jak first visited the roof of the palace after riding the elevator in a support tower and traversing its corresponding support beam. While there are several roof-like structures, most of it is completely flat. There were electrified fences here which blocked off two of the three sections on which Jak battled the Baron. After the final stage, the elevator was able to be accessed which took Jak down to the entry hall. The throne room is situated one level below the roof and is accessed via the same elevator in the entry hall. It opens up to a small hallway with three large drapes and an inactive sentry gun in the back. To the left are two sets of two tall doors which open up to the actual throne room. There is a large red carpet along the middle of the room that leads up a flight of tall stairs, at the top of which is the throne. There are several decorative columns on either side of the room as well. Several panels of the walls, ceiling, and floor have been replaced with glass windows. The throne itself is a tall chair with orange cushions and two computer monitors on either side. There is also a keyboard on the right arm of the chair. In the back of the throne room is a small shaft through which Jak traveled to get to the maintenance room. Characteristics of this room include service platforms, large pipes, and fuel tanks. The area is guarded by several guards, as well as an automated sentry gun. The wall in the back of the room mostly consists of windows, one of which is shattered by Jak in order to grind along the edge with the JET-Board to proceed through the level. Just ahead of this is a small conference room with two tables and tall chairs placed around them. Past this returns Jak to the hall previously visited in the throne room level, though this time the sentry gun is activated, and instead the room provides entrance to the rest of the maintenance area. There is a large ring situated near the ceiling in this section which must be shot down to grind across. Past another sentry gun is the elevator shaft which leads back to the initial entry hall. Notes * Inside both the throne room and the maintenance room, the top of the palace appears to rotate about its vertical axis. Its rotation is not visible from below, and due to the fact that there are support beams connected to the building, this is likely a simple error. However, it is also possible that the rotating structure is separate from the exterior structure that connects with the support beams. References Category:Locations in Jak II Category:Locations in Daxter Category:Krimzon Guard